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Puppy Linux 5.2 "Wary" released

The default desktop in Puppy Linux 5.2 "Wary"
The Puppy Linux development team has announced the arrival of version 5.2 of the "Wary" edition of its independent Linux distribution. Puppy Linux is a popular small release that can run entirely from RAM and its primary focus is ease-of-use.

Based on the 2.6.32.45 Linux kernel, and with all of its base packages recompiled in the T2 System Development Environment, the new release is a "massive upgrade" to the 5.1.x series. Users can now easily upgrade from Xorg 7.3, which is still included by default to support older hardware, to version 7.6 for newer video devices by installing a single PET (Puppy's Extra Treats) package. Because of several problems, the gtkam GTK2 GUI for libgphoto2 has been replaced with PupCamera for automatically detecting digital cameras.

Other changes include a new gHasher checksum generator, an upgraded PuppyPhone (Psip) and fixes for various bugs, including an issue affecting USB 3G modems. The developers also note that the Adobe Flash Player is no longer included out of the box, however, it can quickly be installed via a "semi-automatic download".

The "Wary-series" focuses on supporting older hardware, placing an emphasis on "incremental improvements and bug fixes rather than quantum changes". The project's other branch, Lucid Puppy (aka "Lupu") is based on Ubuntu 10.04 LTS binary packages and is more "leading-edge" than Wary.

More details about the update can be found in the official release announcement and in the release notes. Puppy Linux 5.2 "Wary" is available to download as a 123 MB ISO image file from the project's site and is licensed under the GPL/LGPL. It can boot from several types of media, including USB flash drives, hard disk drives and a LiveCD.